A test compiled essay about building systems to avoid testing them. Using 4 atomic notes to demonstrate the compilation structure.
For two years, I told myself I was 'building infrastructure.' Setting up the perfect note-taking system. Designing the ideal content pipeline. Creating tools that would make the actual work effortless.
But here's what I was really doing: avoiding the uncomfortable work of testing my ideas in public. Infrastructure was my socially acceptable procrastination.
This essay compiles four atomic notes written over the past month as I finally recognized this pattern in myself—and started shipping before I was ready.
Infrastructure as Defense Mechanism
There's a particular flavor of procrastination that's endemic to knowledge workers and creators: building systems instead of using them. It feels productive because you're making genuine progress on real tools. But you're optimizing for a future that never arrives because you never actually test the system.
I did this with note-taking apps for years. Obsidian, Roam, Notion—each promised to be the tool that would finally organize my thinking. I spent hundreds of hours on each, migrating notes, building templates, creating elaborate tagging systems.
The infrastructure was beautiful. The actual writing? Still not happening.
What I've learned: Infrastructure procrastination is a defense mechanism. If you're still building the system, you can't fail at using it. You're protected from discovering that the perfect system won't actually solve your real problem, which is usually fear of judgment or uncertainty about your ideas.
Organizations Do This Too
The same pattern scales. Organizations spend years 'getting ready' to innovate. They hire consultants, run workshops, create innovation labs, develop new processes. All genuinely useful activities. All ways to avoid the discomfort of actually trying something unproven and potentially failing publicly.
I've facilitated workshops where teams generated brilliant ideas, then spent the next six months 'building the infrastructure' to test them. Building alignment. Developing metrics. Creating governance structures. When they finally launched, the market had moved on.
The hard truth: The infrastructure needed to test an idea is usually far simpler than you think. Most of what you're building is protection from emotional discomfort, not technical necessity.
The best time to test was six months ago. The second best time is right now, with whatever broken system you currently have.
The Shift
Two things helped me break the pattern:
1. Reframing 'Ready'
I started treating infrastructure-building as a form of research. If I wasn't sure what system I needed, the fastest way to find out was to publish with the broken system I had. The gaps would reveal themselves immediately.
This essay is an example. I don't have a perfect compiled essay template yet. I'm building it while using it. The discomfort of this imperfect system is precisely what's teaching me what the system actually needs to do.
2. Ship Before It's Ready
I made a rule: If I catch myself building infrastructure for more than a week without testing it, I have to publish something—anything—using the current broken version. The embarrassment of the imperfect system motivates me to improve it faster than perfectionist planning ever did.
This is terrifying. It's also the only thing that works.
Infrastructure procrastination is seductive because it feels like progress. You're learning! You're building! You're being strategic! And all of that is true. But if you're like me, you're also avoiding the vulnerability of showing incomplete work to people who might judge it.
The antidote isn't to stop building systems. It's to build them while using them, not instead of using them. Ship the broken version. Let the discomfort of public imperfection drive you to improve it.
This essay itself is proof of concept. It's not perfect. The template isn't finished. But it's here, it's public, and I'm learning what works by watching you read it.
These atomic notes form the foundation of this essay:
A test compiled essay about building systems to avoid testing them. Using 4 atomic notes to demonstrate the compilation structure.
For two years, I told myself I was 'building infrastructure.' Setting up the perfect note-taking system. Designing the ideal content pipeline. Creating tools that would make the actual work effortless.
But here's what I was really doing: avoiding the uncomfortable work of testing my ideas in public. Infrastructure was my socially acceptable procrastination.
This essay compiles four atomic notes written over the past month as I finally recognized this pattern in myself—and started shipping before I was ready.
Infrastructure as Defense Mechanism
There's a particular flavor of procrastination that's endemic to knowledge workers and creators: building systems instead of using them. It feels productive because you're making genuine progress on real tools. But you're optimizing for a future that never arrives because you never actually test the system.
I did this with note-taking apps for years. Obsidian, Roam, Notion—each promised to be the tool that would finally organize my thinking. I spent hundreds of hours on each, migrating notes, building templates, creating elaborate tagging systems.
The infrastructure was beautiful. The actual writing? Still not happening.
What I've learned: Infrastructure procrastination is a defense mechanism. If you're still building the system, you can't fail at using it. You're protected from discovering that the perfect system won't actually solve your real problem, which is usually fear of judgment or uncertainty about your ideas.
Organizations Do This Too
The same pattern scales. Organizations spend years 'getting ready' to innovate. They hire consultants, run workshops, create innovation labs, develop new processes. All genuinely useful activities. All ways to avoid the discomfort of actually trying something unproven and potentially failing publicly.
I've facilitated workshops where teams generated brilliant ideas, then spent the next six months 'building the infrastructure' to test them. Building alignment. Developing metrics. Creating governance structures. When they finally launched, the market had moved on.
The hard truth: The infrastructure needed to test an idea is usually far simpler than you think. Most of what you're building is protection from emotional discomfort, not technical necessity.
The best time to test was six months ago. The second best time is right now, with whatever broken system you currently have.
The Shift
Two things helped me break the pattern:
1. Reframing 'Ready'
I started treating infrastructure-building as a form of research. If I wasn't sure what system I needed, the fastest way to find out was to publish with the broken system I had. The gaps would reveal themselves immediately.
This essay is an example. I don't have a perfect compiled essay template yet. I'm building it while using it. The discomfort of this imperfect system is precisely what's teaching me what the system actually needs to do.
2. Ship Before It's Ready
I made a rule: If I catch myself building infrastructure for more than a week without testing it, I have to publish something—anything—using the current broken version. The embarrassment of the imperfect system motivates me to improve it faster than perfectionist planning ever did.
This is terrifying. It's also the only thing that works.
Infrastructure procrastination is seductive because it feels like progress. You're learning! You're building! You're being strategic! And all of that is true. But if you're like me, you're also avoiding the vulnerability of showing incomplete work to people who might judge it.
The antidote isn't to stop building systems. It's to build them while using them, not instead of using them. Ship the broken version. Let the discomfort of public imperfection drive you to improve it.
This essay itself is proof of concept. It's not perfect. The template isn't finished. But it's here, it's public, and I'm learning what works by watching you read it.
These atomic notes form the foundation of this essay: